Government avoids resolving gun violence issue

Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) speaks to supporters of House Democrats taking part in a sit-in over gun control in the House Chamber June 23, 2016.

Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) speaks to supporters of House Democrats taking part in a sit-in over gun control in the House Chamber June 23, 2016. (Pete Marovich/Getty Images)

For the first time in my life, I feel embarrassed to be an American. It's a feeling that makes me very uncomfortable. We have just witnessed another tragedy in a school, the 18th in six weeks. And yet, we continue to see total paralysis from our government.

We hear feeble excuses from our legislators, who seem totally afraid to confront special interests that feed their own political coffers. Even commonsense approaches like limiting capacity of weapons or tightening controls for who gets access to weaponry are given lip service, with no action.

We are supposed to be a country that is innovative, capable of solving problems. We set up commissions to respond to terrorist attacks and to respond to dietary issues, pharmaceutical issues, traffic safety, workplace safety, air and water issues, contagious diseases, just to name a few. None of them completely alleviates problems, but all have had major positive impacts.

It is time for all of us to insist that our representatives face this cancer in our society. Now is the time.